Human rights and the environment in Kenya – towards the 2030 Agenda

The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) organized a capacity building workshop and consultation on human rights-based environmental public administration of the mining sector in Naivasha, Kenya, May 18-19 2016.

The workshop was part of an initial four-year Sida-funded initiative – the Environmental Governance Programme - that responds to the challenge of strengthening the environmental, gender, human rights and rule of law dimensions of public administration work in large-scale mining sectors. The event brought together over twenty senior representatives and experts from the Kenyan government, civil society, and the private sector. The workshop illustrates how the holistic 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be mainstreamed into national and sector strategies and plans.

Human rights in environmental public administration

In recent years, the relationship between human rights and environmental protection has become clearer. A healthy environment is necessary for the enjoyment of a vast range of human rights. In turn, the exercise of human rights, including rights of access to information, participation, and remedy, is critical for the protection of the environment.

– UNDP and Swedish EPA efforts to strengthen good governance in the mining sector, including through capacity-building workshops like this one, are of vital importance for the protection of the environment and of human rights, says John Knox, UN special rapporteur on human rights and the environment.

During the workshop sessions were held on topics such as Human Rights in Public Administration, Inclusive Participation, Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity, and Design and Financial Guarantee for Closing of Mining Operations. Additional topics included Environmental Conservation in Kenya, Impacts of the Kenyan Mining Sector on the Environment, and Environmental Data.. The content of the workshop was developed and designed by SEPA/UNDP in close cooperation with the Kenyan National Environment Management Authority (NEMA).

– When I first heard about this initiative I thought of it as yet another set of meetings in which the results only end up in offices. But instead this is a very important initiative, we must wake up, we must wake up all Kenyans, it's a different dimension after this week's meeting, Dr Benard Mogesa from Kenya National Commission for Human Rights, said in his closing remarks.

Platform for exchanging ideas and experiences

The event provided a platform for exchanging country experiences and standards that can strengthen public administration of mining through human-rights based approaches grounded in rule of law and gender equality principles. Participants identified additional learning needs and policy implementation gaps for the programme to address, including opportunities for ensuring more meaningful community engagement throughout the mining cycle, and greater levels of transparency and accountability. In addition, the workshop helped to strengthen longer-term working relationships between the government and civil society participants, as well as between these national partners, SEPA and UNDP. Just after the workshop, the government held a coordination meeting for all Kenya participants to discuss programme activities in more detail, including plans for a Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment of the sector.

Some of the upcoming work the Programme will focus on include holding similiar wokshops with partners in Mozambique and Colombia. Web-based learning materials and e-webinars will also be developed based on areas identified by the participants.